1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for barcodes and mobile devices. More particularly, the present invention relates to an apparatus and method for triggering content sensitive awareness upon scanning a barcode.
2. Description of the Related Art
Mobile terminals were developed to provide wireless communication between users. As technology has advanced, mobile terminals now provide many additional features beyond simple telephone conversation. For example, mobile terminals are now able to provide additional functions, such as an alarm, a Short Messaging Service (SMS), a Multimedia Message Service (MMS), E-mail, games, remote control of short range communication, an image capturing function using a mounted digital camera, a multimedia function for providing audio and video content, a scheduling function, and many more. With the plurality of features now provided, a mobile terminal has effectively become a necessity of daily life.
A mobile ticket is one feature that can be implemented by modern mobile terminals. In a mobile ticket, a mobile terminal receives a barcode. When the barcode is displayed on the mobile terminal, the barcode can be read by a barcode scanner. This enables the mobile terminal to function as a ticket or pass, eliminating the need to issue a paper ticket. A mobile ticket provides many advantages over a paper ticket. For example, a mobile ticket does not need to be printed out, thus saving paper and ink. Moreover, because the ticket is issued to a mobile terminal instead of issued as a paper ticket, the ticket is much less likely to be lost, stolen, or forgotten.
FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a mobile ticket according to the related art.
Referring to FIG. 1, a mobile airline ticket includes a barcode to be scanned. The mobile ticket may also display other information to the user or the employee scanning the barcode. For example, the mobile ticket shown in FIG. 1 includes departure times, seat information, departure gates, and the like. This information may be encoded as metadata associated with the barcode, and the mobile ticket may comprise both the barcode and the associated metadata. The mobile ticket may also be encrypted for greater security.
The barcode shown in FIG. 1 is scanned by a barcode reader to process the ticket. Barcode readers include pen type barcode readers, laser scanners, CCD readers, and imaging scanners. Laser scanners and pen type readers are equipped with a light source and a photodiode. The light source focuses light of a predetermined frequency onto the bar code. The reflected light is detected by the photodiode, and the barcode is scanned based on the reflected light. The light source employed by laser scanners and pen type readers is tuned to a specific frequency, and thus the photodiode is sensitive only to light of those specific frequencies. Presently, however, mobile terminals currently do not utilize this light information to detect the scanning activity of mobile tickets.
Some applications can provide context-sensitive functions based on a mobile ticket. For example, when attending a concert, a mobile terminal should be switched off or to a vibrate mode so that enjoyment of the concert is not interrupted by the mobile terminal ringing. When the mobile terminal receives the concert ticket, the application can extract the concert date and time from the ticket using the associated metadata and schedule the mobile terminal to enter into a vibrate mode when the concert begins, based on the metadata contained in the ticket. However, this method does not take into account the possibility that the concert may be rescheduled or postponed, or that the user may not attend the concert. In such situations, the user must manually update the application so that the mobile terminal does not enter into the vibration mode at the wrong time. Accordingly, there is a need for an apparatus and method for providing improved context sensitive awareness for mobile tickets.